Tag Archives: surgery

I don’t remember why I was there, but it was a discussion of cancer. I looked around at the people who had raised their hands. It wasn’t until the speaker moved on that I realized I was a cancer survivor, too.

Does that seem strange? But my first cancer in 2004 was so ambiguous. I had had a routine Pap test, and was referred to a gynecologist. I had had problematic Pap tests before, and it had usually meant I had a uterine polyp or a vaginal infection. This time it was not simple dysplasia. It seems I had precancerous cells, and the recommended treatment was a hysterectomy. I thought about it, and my sister discussed it with a friend who was also a gynecologist, and reported back that surgery was indeed the treatment of choice.

How was I supposed to relate to a cancer diagnosis that was made only after the cancer was out of my body?

I was over 50, and had pretty much gone through menopause, though once or twice a year I would have some bleeding. Everything about my reproductive system was ambiguous. I had started menstruating at age 9, along with the body changes of puberty, but seldom had my periods. When I was 18 and starting to move beyond my circumscribed Jewish Bronx upbringing, I was diagnosed with Stein-Leventhal syndrome. Great, I thought, I finally get a diagnosis, and it’s Jewish! Since that time, the condition has been renamed polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS. PCOS is a risk factor for many other diseases, including endometrial cancer.

But let’s get back to the hysterectomy. I had already decided that I would have the surgery when my sister got back to me. What had my uterus done for me lately, anyway? I had the doctors make the arrangements, met with the surgeon, and went through all the pre-surgery rigmarole. I made plans to stay with a friend for about a week after surgery, and checked into the hospital. When I woke up afterward, I was told that the biopsy that was done during surgery had been negative. Continue reading →

It’s still March, so it’s still Endometriosis Awareness Month! Today we’ll be looking at endometriosis treatment questions and answers. If you missed the first two posts in this series, you can click to read more about an overview of endometriosis as well as info about diagnosing endometriosis.

Why are there so many treatment options? Which one is best?

There are so many options because there is no “magic bullet” option — that is, no single treatment that works best for everyone. The two main categories of treatment include medication and surgery, but each option has its own benefits and drawbacks. When deciding on the best option for a given individual, some helpful questions to consider might be:

Do I have any current health concerns that would render some treatments unsafe? What types of health risks are acceptable to me?

Am I currently trying to conceive, or will I be in the next six to 12 months? Will I ever want to be pregnant in the future?

Aside from significant health risks, what types of factors — side effects, treatment frequency or duration, cost — would make a treatment difficult for me? How long do I need this treatment to last before I can reevaluate?

This Wednesday could easily be dubbed “Anti-Woman Day” at the Arizona Legislature. Several anti-choice bills will be voted on in two committees that day, and if the votes go anything like last Wednesday’s House Health Committee vote, women don’t stand a chance. We need YOUR help this week. Please TAKE ACTION on BOTH items to stand up for women in Arizona.

First, THANK YOU for taking action last week by emailing the House Health Committee about the two bills that were up for vote. HB2443 (Gender and Race Selection) did not receive a hearing that day, but stay tuned for movement on that bill again soon.

Unfortunately, with HB2416, ideology once again trumped science at the Legislature! In testimony, Planned Parenthood Medical Director, Dr. Taylor, took questions from the panel of legislators. One legislator, Peggy Judd, could not understand why handing a woman a pill was different from a surgical procedure, ignoring the medical common sense evidence that Dr. Taylor presented during the hearing to decide whether abortion-by-pill should be subject to the same clinic regulations as a surgical abortion. The committee ultimately decided….it should be.

The hearing was fraught with misinformation, and debate was shut down before pro-choice legislators even had a chance to ask their questions. Continue reading →